The millions of dollars in crucial federal and state grants it distributes in crime-challenged Milwaukee and throughout Wisconsin have been closely guarded by governors

Madison, Wis. — A quarter-century after a governor consolidated his hold on a support office for law enforcement, Gov. Scott Walker is laying plans to hand the agency over to the state attorney general.

The state Office of Justice Assistance and the millions of dollars in crucial federal and state grants it distributes in crime-challenged Milwaukee and throughout Wisconsin have been closely guarded by governors since Tommy Thompson, particularly at times when those governors had political disagreements with the attorney general.

But with Walker and Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen working together for the last two years as GOP allies, and with federal law enforcement aid falling, the governor appears ready to shift the office to a department and elected official with a main focus on public safety.